U.S. News ranks engineering physics No. 1 in country; Cornell is No. 14 in QS World University rankings

In its 2013 rankings, U.S. News and World Report rates Cornell first in the country among undergraduate engineering science/engineering physics programs at doctorate-granting schools, up from second in 2012. Cornell also scored 6th, overall, in academic reputation. In the 2012-13 QS World University rankings, which were announced Sept. 11, Cornell placed No. 14 in the world.

In other U.S. News categories, which were announced Sept. 12, Cornell ranks:

  • 4th for undergraduate agricultural engineering;
  • 8th for "Best in Undergraduate Engineering" at doctorate-granting engineering schools, tied with Carnegie Mellon and up one spot from last year;
  • 10th for "Best in Undergraduate Business," down one notch from 2012;
  • 10th for economic diversity among national universities, tied with Rice University and the same rank as last year (measured by the percentage of undergraduates receiving Pell Grants);
  • 12th in the "best value" category, down two slots from last year; and
  • 15th on the list of "Best National Universities," for a fourth year in a row.

 Among its peers, Cornell had an "academic reputation index" (the peer assessment as measured by a survey of presidents, provosts, heads of admission and high school guidance counselors) that is as high as it has ever been. "We had a score of 94, and only five schools outscored us on that measure: Harvard, Princeton, Yale, MIT and Stanford," said Marin Clarkberg, director of Cornell's Office of Institutional Research and Planning.

As another indicator of reputation, Cornell ranked No. 1 on the list of "High School Counselors' Top Picks," tied with seven other schools and up from ninth last year.

Cornell was also among the "Programs to Look For" in the "Writing in the Disciplines" category, in which "colleges typically make writing a priority at all levels of instruction and across the curriculum." And Cornell made an appearance in the "Internships" category, for schools that "require or encourage students to apply what they're learning in the classroom to work in the real world through closely supervised internships or practicums, or through cooperative education, in which one period of study typically alternates with one of work."

The 2013 undergraduate rankings are published in 2012 and are largely based on data referencing 2010-11.

U.S. News publishes its graduate school rankings annually in March.

For more information about the 2013 undergraduate rankings, visit U.S. News and World Report online.

In the QS World University rankings, Cornell's 2012-13 rank was up one spot from last year. The rankings are compiled using the following six indicators: academic reputation (40 percent), employer reputation (10 percent), faculty/student ratio (20 percent), citations per faculty member (20 percent), international faculty ratio (5 percent) and international student ratio (5 percent).

Full QS rankings are available online.

 

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